Things like lighting ratios and f-stops can be objectively codified and repeated, but the essence of an image — what makes the viewer stop and peruse its story — can be a bit harder to articulate. This great video asks five photographers how to create that magic.
Coming to you from Advancing Your Photography, this helpful video talks about what it is that creates emotion or a story in a photo. Such a thing can be a bit nebulous and is often something we have to find for ourselves; as one photographer puts it: "you know it when you see it." For me, that means building up instinct. And while we often romanticize the artist's way and consider that instinct something you either have or you don't, the truth is that in the vast majority of successful photographers, it's been learned simply by spending a lot of time (thoughtfully) behind the camera, trying, failing, and trying again. Repeating the process thousands of times might not be as romantic as discovering some magical key that unlocks photographic success, but it is the way that's most likely to lead you to where you'd like to go. Check out the video above for all their great advice.
Some great (subtle) advice from 5 accomplished photographers. Interesting absence of debate directly opposed to what usually devolves in many of the GAS/fanboy threads.